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Now that the gloves have come off in the relationship between the D.C. Council and Mayor Adrian Fenty, it's apparently time for more of their amusingly petty disagreements to become public. The Post has a hilarious story in today's District Extra about a brewing battle over exactly how the city's allotment of free Wizards tickets will be distributed.
Turns out last week the mayor's office slyly attempted to pick up all 24 tickets for the city's fancy box at the Verizon Center — the one Abe Pollin gave in return to the District government for approving that $50 million gift to upgrade the Phone Booth. But some brilliant employee in the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, which handles the tickets, decided that didn't seem quite right, and alerted enough council members of the attempt to throw the city's Wizards box into a hotbed of political rancor. Council members are demanding they get some of the tickets, too — though they're trying to do it quietly.
The Post apparently decided to leave it up to us to guess which council member said this, so feel free to speculate in comments.Those council members aware of the tiff have been trying to keep it on the down low because it seems petty in comparison to bigger issues, such as the closing of 23 schools or the tax scandal.
But losing seats in the box could mark another lost battle for control. One council member said, "It's the principle."
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So when you see Marion Barry outside the Verizon Center scalping tickets, you know the Council got it's way.
***Disclaimer***
FatKidSpecial is not an employee of the Washington Post Co. or subsidiary and therefore free to comment on Marion Barry being a total fucking crackhead.
The box seats at RFK were a great secret perk allotted to Councilmembers, their staff, and their cronies. I imagine the seats in the new stadium will be even more desireable.
The Verizon seats dispute is just amazing. Shows the pettiness of our overlords.
As to the quote, my money's on Thomas or Wells.
Although, having sat in the council box at RFK many a time, I have to say that those seats have the least air circulation in the entire stadium. plus.. i mean...it's the Nationals.
I knew that ticket bribe was a problem just waiting to happen when I first read about it. How incredibly naked of a bribe is that? This is similar to those low-numbered license plates. There are simply no believably legitimate reasons for them. The only possible utility for them is for illegitimate purposes.
I would hope against experience that the records of who is actually using these tickets is made public. It'd probably make a great running column in the CityPaper.
Smells like third rate banana republic perks to me.
Once again, our city is a laughingstock.
I too sat in the Council boxes at RFK and agree that it was a sweatbox. But it had free (albeit crappy) food and beer.
I wonder if council offices keep track of who got the tickets. The ticket gatekeeper may or may not be that detail oriented. Some offices would give the tickets away to anyone who requested; others were super stingy. And there was always lots of trading of tickets for particular games.
And the offer of box seats was clearly intended by Pollin to affect the vote for $50 million. If I remember correctly, it was only Cheh and Mendelson that voted against that bill. I wonder if they get to take advantage of the free Verizon box tickets nonetheless?
Having worked for a couple fortune 100 organizations who also have boxes at verizon, unless city council is conducting business that improves the city economically, their is absolutely no reason for them to ever possess them. Its just a tool to wine and dine decision makers and improve employee moral plus for christ sakes were talking about the bullets and is city council that pressed to see all those bricks and mountain dew spewed all over the court...
http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-28-348/Caron-Butler--Not-Getting-His-Dew.html
Zippy, don't forget that having those box seat tickets normally also means having tickets to the concerts as well, which can have a hell of a lot higher street value than mid-season Les Bullez sans Arenas tickets.